Mary Marvel #4

When Mary Batson discovers she can't transform into Mary Marvel, Shazam reveals a rare 24-hour window each millennium when his powers fail—today is that day.

When Dangerous Dan flees through the city, he ducks into a mask shop run by the scheming Mr. Beest, who outfits him with a disguise so convincing that Mary Marvel loses the trail—then uses the crook's desperation to force him into a crime: impersonating the wealthy Pierpont J. Vanderpool to rob his safe. Mary Marvel catches up with both the impostor and the mask-maker's operation, but Mr. Beest has one more trick up his sleeve: he targets a desperate young woman who needs quick money, giving her a beautiful mask to wear in a local beauty contest. When Mary Marvel shows up to present the prize, she uncovers the scheme and learns what it truly means to see past surfaces.

Mary Marvel encounters Mr. Goodhart, a candy shop owner so genuinely kind-hearted that he hides a fleeing criminal from the law—asking only that the man reform. When the crook takes advantage and robs the shop anyway, Mary steps in to set things right, but Mr. Goodhart's unwavering belief in human goodness proves to be the real power at work. Sometimes the kindest heart can change even the hardest criminal.

Vita Min's mother tries her best to get the energetic girl ready for bed, but the spirited youngster has other ideas—leading to a playful chase that leaves her exhausted parent scrambling to keep up. In this lighthearted one-pager, it's anyone's guess who'll win the bedtime battle.

When Gus Gaylord and his trained seals get evicted from their apartment, Mary Marvel steps in to help find them new lodgings—but the playful animals have other ideas, leaving a trail of chaos in their wake. As the seals cause one mishap after another, Mary discovers that even the most troublesome pranks can lead to something unexpectedly heroic when her four-flippered friends finally get the chance to prove their worth. In helping Gus wrangle his rambunctious crew, Mary learns that sometimes what looks like mischief is just waiting for the right moment to shine.